This invention pertains to a UV light curable composition which may comprise an acrylic oligomer, an acrylate monomer, a photoinitiator, and a filler such as Kevlar and carbon.
Rapid, high-quality, on-aircraft repair techniques for composite components are desirable. However, current field level repair techniques use thermally accelerated adhesive bonding to restore the original design strength of the composite laminate. In practice, several problems exist with on-aircraft thermally cured repair methods. Airframe structural members act as heat sinks, and make it difficult to obtain a uniform cure temperature profiles. Excessive power requirements can result from efforts to offset this heat sinking effect. Also, commonly used resin systems require low temperature storage to avoid premature degradation, increasing storage cost and support complexity. Furthermore, the thermally accelerated require heat blankets for cure that can be difficult to work with depending on the size and geometry of the aircraft part being repaired.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,144,544 discloses compositions including fiberglass that meet these needs. However, this patent discloses that composite compositions containing Kevlar did not cure below the Kevlar when exposed to UV light. It would be desirable to find curable compositions that include Kevlar or Carbon particles or fabric layers.